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June 6, 2011 What an exciting privilege it was to spend the end of May with pastors and evangelists in Hawassa, Ethiopia! Our team of three pastors joined a stellar team of Ethiopian translators (including the translator of the recently finished Christ-Centered Preaching) to host a conference focusing on 2 Timothy and related topics. Our pastors focused on exegetical (whole book, verse by verse) preaching, discussing and modeling it throughout the week as they taught through 2 Timothy. The idea of gradually preaching all the way through a book of Scripture was exciting to those who attended. One pastor told us that he planned to start studying 1 Timothy exegetically with his family as soon as the conference was over! The idea of small groups was also introduced as a way to ease the burden of whole-flock discipleship off of the shoulders of pastors and evangelists and spread it out among the whole congregation. Small groups were not just theoretically discussed, but practically modeled - the pastors and evangelists themselves broke into small groups to discuss the conference teachings and to apply the ideas to their churches and ministry contexts. At the end of the conference, it was a thrill to shake hands with the pastors and evangelists one by one, and to hand each a copy of Christ-Centered Preaching (by Brian Chappell) in Amharic! The books were enthusiastically received, and we pray that the its message will be encouraging and helpful as these brothers and sisters teach God’s Word in Ethiopia and beyond. In addition to doing the conference, the GFE team brought 65 books to stock the library of the first ever GFE Resource Center located in the Great Commission Ethiopia Ministries compound. In addition to a library, the completed resource center will include computers which pastors and evangelists can use to access sermon preparation tools and online seminary classes to equip themselves further as leaders of God’s people. Lord-willing, the resource center will be operational in the near future. Our ministry partners in Ethiopia, as well as the pastors and evangelists themselves, say that being a pastor in Ethiopia is a very difficult job. Full-time ministry workers are expected to continually teach and pour out, but they seldom get time to learn or be filled. By the grace of God, we want to change that. Our goal while in Ethiopia was to build up the Body of Christ (particularly the pastors and evangelists) in Hawassa with our presence, our participation, and our prayers. As our mission statement says, "our goal is to equip and encourage Ethiopian pastors and evangelists with heart-language literature, ministry tools, and relevant conferences." Will you join with us? Explore our website to find out about the many exciting ways to get involved! Yours for the Ethiopian Church, The GFE Team *********************************************************** April 12, 2011 The past several months have been full of exciting developments for GFE... Starting today, about half of the GFE team is representing the ministry at the Gospel Coalition Conference at McCormick Place in Chicago. We thank the Lord for this opportunity to connect with people who come by the booth and to build partnerships for God's glory! As of this month, the translation of Christ-Centered Preaching from English into Amharic is in its final stages! The translator working on the book in Ethiopia is already using the principles he has learned to teach other pastors in his sphere of influence. He often tells us that his excitement builds with every page that he translates and he views the message of the book as "transformative." We plan to distribute the book to all the pastors and evangelists who attend the 2011 pastors conference, and the book will then be available to the public. We hope that this heart-language resource will have a widespread influence in encouraging and equipping many Christian leaders throughout the country. Speaking of the 2011 pastors conference, it is coming up soon! A team of American pastors will leave on May 14th and will hold several conferences in Hawassa, in continuation of the past two years of teaching. They will work in partnership with Pastor Getu Ayalew of Yih Hiwot Birhan Church (who is widely recognized as the "Billy Graham" of Ethiopia), who will be teaching at the conference as well. They will also be joined by a team of phenomenal translators including Getu Worku (a long-standing partner) and Eshete (the translator of Christ-Centered Preaching). The team of American pastors will be accompanied by a team of American doctors, nurses, and students, who will be participating in various ministries associated with Great Commission Ministries Ethiopia (our national partners who are the equivalent of Campus Crusade for Christ). It is our hope to build up the Body of Christ in Hawassa with our presence, our participation, and our prayers. As our mission statement says, "our goal is to equip and encourage Ethiopian pastors and evangelists with heart-language literature, ministry tools, and relevant conferences." Will you join with us? There are so many ways to become part of the Gospel for Ethiopia Team! We are in need of prayer. You can join GFE's efforts by lifting this partnership up to God! If you do one thing, do this. We are translating solid theological and pastoral books into Amharic, the language of Ethiopia. You could adopt a book project! We are traveling to Ethiopia to hold yearly conferences for pastors and evangelists. If you are a pastor, pray about how your church could get involved. You might even consider going with us! We are setting up a resource center where pastors and evangelists can study and prepare sermons. There will be computers with internet and a trained ministry worker on hand to direct people to relevant links and online resources to enhance their study and ministry. These online resources include online seminary classes which are completely free of charge, allowing these servants of God to pursue further education without leaving their hometown and ministry. You can make this possible through a donation of any size! We need Ambassadors to take the vision of GFE back to their local churches. We provide Ambassadors with informational materials and they simply spread the word! You could become a GFE Ambassador today! If you have any comments, questions, suggestions, or want to talk further, please contact us at info@gospelforethiopia.org. May God bless you, and thank you for partnering with us! Yours for the Ethiopian Church, The GFE Team
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